M.P. Veerendrakumar demands inquiry into telephone tapping

The Socialist Janata (Democratic) President and former Union Minister M.P. Veerendrakumar has demanded the Central government “to order an inquiry into the tapping of telephones of top political leaders of Kerala including Leader of Opposition V.S. Achuthanandan allegedly by some trade union leaders of BSNL.”

Talking to ‘The Hindu’ at Mezhathur Vaidyamadhom on Tuesday he said that “this is a very serious matter as BSNL is the leading communication net work provider under the Union government. Tapping the phone of V.S. Achuthanandan when he was Chief Minister and his Secretaries by some BSNL trade union leaders close to the Communist Party of India (Marxist) is an espionage work done to settle scores in the factional feud in the Party.”

He said that “this is the violation of fundamental right of a citizen for privacy. The phone tapping was done without any direction from the official authorities. This corrodes into the credibility of BSNL and will adversely affect its future efficient functioning.”

“The latest incident of phone tapping of a senior police official inquiring the sensational T.P. Chandrasekharan murder case shows that the clandestine phone tapping of political leaders and top officials are going on in the State. So this is a very serious matter which the Central government should inquire and take action against the guilty,” Mr. Veerendrakumar has said.

Regarding the ongoing factional fight in the CPI (M) the SJD leader has said that “the fight in that party is ideological as a section of it wanted the Corporatisation of a revolutionary party that had fought for the workers and the marginalized sections of the people. The dominant leadership of the Party now behaves as if they are above law.”

They say that the two district secretaries of their party involved in sex scandal will be punished by the party and not by the law of the land or the judiciary.

Those party leaders suspected to be involved in crimes like murder of T.P. Chandrasekharan will also be enquired into by the party and decision on them will be taken by the party itself. This is the very negation of judiciary and the rule of law,” they said.

He said that when veteran Communist leaders like A.K. Gopalan was leading the CPI (M) there were people around him. But now people are afraid to approach the party top leaders because they keep distance from the people and their problems. This will alienate the CPI (M) from the masses in Kerala, Mr. Veerendrakumar warned.